At the beginning February, pupils, staff, parents and members of the local community came together to celebrate the official opening of the new ‘Community Kitchen’ in Minishant Primary School.

The evening was a celebration of a project that started a year ago and was the first opportunity for the community to see inside the new facility, housed in the heart of the village. 

The motivation for the project came from the pupils themselves, as there was a large space in the school which had formerly been used as the school kitchen.

This space had become known to pupils and staff as “The Dumping Ground”. The space wasn’t safe for pupils to use and they didn’t want a dumping ground in their school, so they took advantage of the opportunity to apply for the PAR North Carrick Decision Day in  March 2017 to win a share of £80,000 to develop a community kitchen.

Pupils and staff thought a community kitchen would offer a shared space that everyone could access. They knew this space could become something special and just needed some help to get their plans underway! 

On the day, five pupils had to present the idea to 145 people! There were 10 groups who were all looking for some of the £80,000 that was available. The pupils gave an outstanding presentation which won them enough votes to secure funding for £20,000 to get started on their project.

Pupils make regular use of the new kitchen during their food technology lessons and parents even had a go during ‘Back to School Week’ in November 2017. The school has been well supported by Lyndsay Guidi from ‘Home Cook School’ in Maybole, who taught all pupils and staff how to make the delicious haggis towers that were enjoyed by all at the opening.

The evening itself was a roaring success; full of poems, songs and dances. A real Scottish celebration! The audience were given an extra treat from Maybole Pipe Band who were also successful in securing funding at the Decision Day.  

Following their outstanding performance, pupils served up the haggis supper that they had helped to prepare. This was a true representation of community spirit and in the words of Mrs McKellar, Head Teacher, the pupils of Minishant Primary School are “small but mighty!”